It Just Takes One Encounter
by Hermione331
Summary: Bakura was never one for petty feelings. One teenage boy, though, may just change everything he believes in. ONE-SHOT


Bakura never thought sentiment was something you should waste your time on. Feelings, emotions, and all that other stuff were just... pointless. It would only hinder you in your goals. Feelings were never something to while away your days with. He would much rather steal and cause pain, whichever more convenient at the moment. He wasn't the Thief King in Ancient Egypt for nothing, you know.

Bakura had long since been able to acquire his own body, and therefore had no use for Ryou Bakura to wear the Millennium Ring any longer. He was free to wreak havoc on his own without wondering when his host's body would give out due to his activities. Walking down the streets of Domino in the evening, Bakura wondered where he would threaten for his next meal this fine night. With his intimidating glare and the ability to steal people's souls, he didn't really need money to sustain himself. Of course, even his death threats and skills in theft couldn't acquire him a permanent place to stay, so he just settled for stretching out on the nearest park bench every night. He didn't mind, really: when you sleep in a cold Soul Room made of nothing but stone for four years, you tend to get used to hard surfaces.

Just as Bakura sat down on an empty bus stop bench with a large chicken leg, a slight weight plopped next to him, his shoulder being bumped accidentally. He turned to glare at the intruder, but stopped short when he took in the person's appearance.

He was a slim boy, with slightly tanned skin. His chocolate brown eyes were wide and exuded innocence, as well as his carefree smile. The boy's hair was a caramel brown topped with an orangish hue, and extremely shaggy. In other words, Bakura thought he would make an excellent toy. The boy turned to smile at Bakura, who in turn scowled at himself for almost smiling back.

"Hey there! I thought you looked a little lonely, so I decided to join ya!" He exclaimed.

Bakura growled low, taking a large bite out of the meat in his hand. "Thanks for your concern, Fluffy, but you'd best go away now, while I'm still in a good mood," he snapped. The boy pouted at Bakura's harsh words, and crossed his arms.

"You're sure in a good mood. Either way, I'm staying here whether you like it or not. I got kicked out of my dorm for the night, and I have nowhere else to go." Bakura snickered at the boy's words, and tossed the now chicken bone over his shoulder before wiping his hand over his mouth to get rid of excess grease.

"Well, that's your problem, Fluffy. Now if you don't mind, I need to retire for the night," at this, Bakura stretched out his legs and kicked the boy off the bench, propping his head up with the palms of his hands. The boy groaned in pain upon making contact with the sidewalk, rubbing his backside with a glare on his face. The glare wasn't very menacing, though. Bakura thought it looked almost cute on him, his bottom lip slightly puckered. He then proceeded to smack himself mentally. The boy was not _cute_. More annoying, than anything.

"What was that for?!" He asked. Bakura chuckled and stretched again, cracking one eye open to look at the boy below him.

"I told you I was retiring for the night, didn't I?" He said.

The boy stood up and crossed his arms over his chest, shooting another glare at Bakura. His gaze softened, though, upon registering what the white-haired man's words implied. "You don't have a place to stay, do you?" He asked.

Bakura grunted and turned on his side, annoyed at this point. "So what if I don't? Haven't got any money for that shit anyways," he muttered angrily.

The boy smiled softly and rested a hand on Bakura's shoulder, picking up his legs as he sat down again. He dropped Bakura's legs onto his lap, and slouched in his seat. "Well, maybe tomorrow I can show you around my dorm. I got kicked out 'cause Sy wanted to pack in peace. He moved up a class," the boy explained.

He looked over at Bakura, who was scowling at him intensely. Folding his legs in on himself and out of the boy's lap, Bakura looked away. "Thanks for the offer, Fluffy, but I don't take pity from others," he growled, turning on his other side.

The boy tried to glare at the white-haired man again, but only succeeded in an annoyed pout. "Stop calling me Fluffy! That's not my name!"

Bakura chuckled, closing his eyes again to show indifference. "I don't know your name, and your hair looks like a Kuriboh. The only option is to call you Fluffy," he smiled smugly at hearing the boy's spluttered protests. He stood up and pouted at Bakura, rubbing his temple and sitting down again. "I'll have you know my hair looks nothing like a Kuriboh, and my name is Jaden Yuki!" He said. Shrugging, the white-haired man yawned loudly and turned over again.

"Whatever you say, Fluffy," he mumbled. Jaden grumbled angrily to himself before shoving Bakura over and lying down on the bench as well. Bakura opened his eyes in shock, and quickly turned his expression to malicious.

"If you just moved me so we could sleep on the same bench, then Ra help me..." he trailed off, letting the words sink in with a scowl towards the brunette. He merely smirked and closed his eyes, snuggling into Bakura. "That's exactly what I just did. Besides, do you really expect a 'Fluffy' like me to face the harsh cold tonight? Alone?" He asked, pouting.

Looking into those chocolate eyes, those pleading, beaten eyes, Bakura released a harsh breath at the effect it had on him. What the hell was he doing, wasting his time with this, this... this immature boy! He still turned around, though, and growled to show he was still angry. "Alright, Fluffy, but if you don't let me get away the next morning you'll be sorry," he threatened before shutting his eyes. He got no response from Jaden, though. The boy was already fast asleep.

-/-/-/-/-

The next morning, Jaden woke up with a groan, stretching out. He rubbed the sleep from his eyes and took in his surroundings. The sun was shining bright over the horizon of a tall cluster of shops and buildings, making him squint and cover his eyes with his hands. Jaden tried stretching out, as he felt stiff from the night before. When his arms came into contact with a warm mass that disappeared as he stretched, he heard a loud grunt and the sound of a body making contact with the concrete.

"Damnit, Fluffy! I just wanted to get a good night's sleep, and you just had to ruin that, too!" the white-haired man exclaimed angrily.

Jaden snickered and held out a hand for him to take.

"Well, I'm so sorry, sir. I guess you were just out of luck today," he grinned as he spoke.

The man huffed and crossed his arms, turning his glare away from Jaden. He frowned at the man on the floor, refusing his offer to help. They stood in those positions for a short while, causing the man to eventually open one of his eyes (when did he close them?) and look back at the hand that was still outstretched. He huffed and reluctantly accepted the hand, standing up with Jaden's help.

"I never did catch your name, mister," Jaden said.

The man dusted himself off as soon as he was upright again, and he glared down at Jaden, his white bangs shadowing his face.

"Bakura," he muttered.

Jaden beamed, and slung an arm around Bakura's shoulder.

"It's nice to meet you, Bakura!" Jaden exclaimed.

Bakura crossed his arms over his chest, and said nothing. Jaden struggled for something to say, and then smiled.

"Hey Bakura, why don't I take you out for some breakfast?" he offered.

The white-haired man pondered the question for a short while, and then shrugged his shoulders.

"Sure, why not," he said lazily. Jaden grinned and grabbed Bakura's hand, dragging him towards the general public and away from the park bench.

"Let's go, then! I saw this really snazzy diner a ways down the street!"

-/-/-/-/-

Bakura wolfed down the food that he had been served after ordering, which consisted of eggs, plenty of bacon, sausage, ham, hash browns, and three slices of toast. Jaden was eating at equal pace, with only a short stack of pancakes and some strawberries. The two hadn't said a word to each other the whole way to the diner, and weren't planning on exchanging pleasantries anytime soon. Bakura stopped for a minute to gather his bearings and steal glances at the teenage boy in front of him. He was kind, innocent, and energetic. He was also blatantly stupid most of the time, and annoying with his _helping hand_ and whatnot. Heh, whatnot. That was a funny word.

Bakura was taken away from his musings when he heard a loud belch and a sigh of contentment. He saw Jaden leaning back in his seat with a hand on his stomach and a lazy smile on his lips. He opened his eyes upon sensing Bakura looking at him, though, and tilted his head in confusion. His eyes lowered to Bakura's lips, and he raised an eyebrow.

"You have bacon grease and syrup all over your face," he stated.

Bakura shrugged and made to wipe the excess food from his face when Jaden gently grabbed his wrist and shook his head.

"You're not supposed to wipe your food on your sleeve, silly. Here, let me clean that up for you," he said.

Jaden picked up a napkin and started wiping Bakura's face clean of the grease and syrup, making Bakura's eyes widen in mild surprise. He grabbed Jaden's wrist and yanked it towards him, in a split-second attempt to get his hand away from his face, but that didn't seem to work out too well. Jaden had already been leaning over the small table to complete the task he had started, and when Bakura yanked his wrist, he was jolted forward, and in a moment of confusion, their lips met.

Bakura was panicking; this boy was kissing him! This immature, annoying, teenage boy! Kissing HIM! He just about pushed the boy away, save for the fact that his lips tasted like whipped cream and strawberries. He was unsure about what his own lips taste like, but hey, Jaden didn't seem to mind it. He had hesitantly placed a hand on Bakura's chest, the other bracing himself on the table. Bakura held his hands out awkwardly, unsure of what to do with them. Eventually, Jaden tugged on Bakura's hands and rested them on his waist, all while he wrapped his arms around the white-haired man's neck. A loud cough interrupted them, and they broke apart to turn and look at their waitress, who was blushing furiously and holding their check. Jaden cleared his throat as his own cheeks reddened and he retreated back to his side of the small table. Bakura leaned back in his seat with a dark scowl on his face, crossing his arms over his chest in a defensive position. The waitress gave them their check and walked away quickly without a word, leaving them alone once again.

"So, Bakura…" Jaden trailed off, unsure of what to say.

Bakura ignored him and picked up the check, eyes scanning over the price of their meal. He raised an eyebrow at the number printed at the bottom of the receipt, and tossed it over to Jaden.

"Here, Fluffy. You sure picked an expensive place to eat at. Total is thirty bucks," he said.

Jaden scanned over the receipt himself, and his eyes widened at seeing that Bakura was right. He slapped a hand to his forehead in exasperation.

"Damn! I only have twenty five!" he exclaimed.

Bakura smirked over at the brunette and beckoned him closer. Jaden reluctantly stood from his seat and sat back down next to Bakura, curious.

"Do you have the guts to dine and dash, Fluffy?" Bakura asked.

Jaden's eyes widened, but he slowly nodded. The white-haired man grinned and grabbed Jaden's hand, standing them both up. He placed a soft kiss to Jaden's jawline right under the ear, leaving a trail with his lips. As the brunette let out a shaky breath, Bakura grabbed his wrist and pulled him away from the table, and out the door. They heard a shout of surprise from the diner, but they didn't stop to look back.

-/-/-/-/-

Jaden and Bakura stopped when they were in a random neighborhood, Jaden the only one of the two out of breath. They were surrounded by houses, the whole area eerily quiet. Jaden looked around nervously, and then at Bakura.

"Do you really do that every day? Just eat and then leave?" he demanded. Bakura shrugged, indifferent to the situation.

"It's how I live, Fluffy."

Jaden pouted and turned away, angry at the white-haired man.

"You shouldn't be doing that, Baku! Have you tried getting a real job, establishing a life for yourself?" he asked. Bakura glared at the brunette.

"Don't ever call me that again. And no, I haven't. There are too many idiots around for me to keep my patience in such a petty thing as a _job_," he sneered the last word, as if it burned his tongue while he said it. Jaden frowned at his words.

"You should at least go looking around for one. I mean, not all jobs require for you to interact with people. Besides, if you have the money to buy the things you need, then there would be no need for you to run."

Bakura scoffed.

"I am perfectly fine with running my whole life. I am over 5,000 years old, for your information," he snapped. Jaden's eyebrow's raised at the formal use of Bakura's speech.

"For your information? Wouldn't it just be faster to say FYI?" he said, scratching his head.

Bakura's eyes narrowed at the brunette's words, and he rolled them in annoyance.

"What the fuck is FYI?" he snarled.

Jaden grinned and looped his arm into Bakura's.

"Here, let me walk you to my dorm. You have a lot to learn."

-/-/-/-/-

"No, FYI is for your information, not fried York instead!" Jaden exclaimed.

He was currently looking over Bakura's shoulder as the 5,000 year-old spirit typed at his cell phone, using acronyms in the wrong way for the hundredth time.

"Why do you people have abbreviations for these things, anyways? It's so much more worthwhile to speak with someone in person, and not using ridiculous acronyms such as the blasted _OMG _and _ROF_-whatever!" he shouted. He threw Jaden's phone at his dorm wall, and was granted with a minor satisfaction when he saw the screen crack and heard a satisfying _crunch_. Jaden groaned and ran his hand through his hair in frustration.

"I get that you're frustrated, Baku, but that doesn't mean you get to break my stuff!" he said angrily.

Bakura huffed and crossed his arms, a gesture Jaden was seeing often in the multiple hours they had spent after arriving at the brunette's dorm.

"What did I say about calling me Baku?!" he snarled. Jaden glared back at him, though the expression was really nothing more than an angry pout.

"I'll be calling you Baku as long as you call me Fluffy," he said. Bakura sighed harshly and leaned back in Jaden's computer chair.

"Then I guess we're stuck at a standstill," he grumbled.

Jaden nodded, but said nothing in response. They sat in a strained silence for a few minutes before Jaden noticed that the sun outside was setting, marking the end of another day with hues of pinks and oranges.

"What a beautiful sunset…" Jaden breathed, turning his body to look better. Bakura snorted, but turned to look at it as well. The room was casting orange, pink, and yellow shadows through the window because of the sunset, causing the spirit to turn his attention to something else.

Jaden's silky-looking brunette hair was shining softly in the light of the setting sun, throwing dark shadows over his eyes and face. Bakura thought that the thoughtful expression he was wearing, and the light, was making him look more serious and mature than he did before. He was caught in a trance, just looking at Jaden. His chocolate brown eyes seemed sharper under the light, bringing an underlying fierce passion and swirl of emotion to Bakura's attention. He stepped forward quietly, and stopped just behind Jaden. Raising a hand tentatively, he wrapped a strand of the boy's locks between his fingers, marveling at how soft the hair was. The brunette winced slightly in surprise at the contact, but didn't turn around. Bakura moved forward, removing his hand from Jaden's hair and wrapping his arms around his waist.

"Baku, what are you…?" he trailed off with a small gasp as the spirit placed a chaste kiss on his neck, and dipped his tongue to trail softly against the skin.

"Mm, you taste good, Fluffy," he breathed in between the multiple kisses he was giving.

Jaden reacted out of surprise and nervousness, turning around and placing firm hands on Bakura's shoulders.

"Please, Baku. We just met, and while I get the message, I would like to get to know you better first," he stated firmly. Bakura scowled, but bit back his retort as he saw the sun slip under the horizon, slowly putting the sky into a gentle darkness. He pulled away swiftly and picked up his jacket as he walked to the door, and opened it. He turned and raised a single hand in a motionless goodbye. Jaden moved forward and took Bakura's wrist gently in his hand, placing a slip of paper into the spirit's hand. Bakura looked at the paper with a baffled expression and was just about to ask what it was for when Jaden spoke.

"Open the paper."

He did as instructed and was even more confused to find a ten-digit number scrawled onto it. He looked up with an eyebrow raised.

"What's this, Fluffy?" he asked.

Jaden offered a small smile, and nodded towards the paper in his hand.

"That's my telephone number, Baku. If you have a phone handy somewhere, then call me. I want to see you again sometime soon," he said. Bakura nodded and stuffed the slip of paper into his pocket, turning to open the door. Just as he was about to walk through it, Jaden tackled him in a tight embrace.

"Bye, Baku. You'd best not stay a stranger!" he laughed lightly, but Bakura could detect a hint of worry and sadness. He patted one of the arms around his waist awkwardly, unsure of what to do.

"Sure, I'll see you around. Bye, Fluffy."

Without another word, he walked out of the door and shut it with slight force.

-/-/-/-/-

**-Three Days Later-**

Bakura woke up that morning with a harsh groan, blinking against the sunlight. Checking the watch he just happened to come across, he saw that it was already 8:17. He was applying for a job hauling loads off of pickup trucks at the local depot, and the appointment was at 8:30. He sat up and rubbed the sleep from his eyes before checking to see if he still had what little belongings he had.

Pocket change, check. Approximately $3.72? Yup. Pocket knife he…stumbled across? Check. Jaden's telephone number? Check, actually. He had been contemplating on whether or not he would try and figure out the public payphone to try and talk to him again, unable to find the heart to actually throw away the slip of paper with the brunette's untidy scrawl on it. He took the paper from his trench coat pocket and stared at the ten digit number, as he had been doing for the past three days.

"Fluffy…" Bakura remained unaware that he had said anything as he slipped the paper back into his pocket and set off to the depot.

Bakura was lucky enough in his persuasive words and skill to get the job he applied for right on the spot, and he was given his first assignment. It was a simple enough task; Bakura was to unload sacks of sand from a pickup and stack it on the crates in the depot's drop off lot. It was simple work, fortunately, and he was glad that right now, this was all he had to do in order to get paid. He finished after a good few hours under the sun, as there were two trucks full of sand, and he only had the help of one other. It was no matter to him, though, because he finished that and three other tasks that required muscle work, and he was done for the day. He had been told that he would be paid at the end of next week, and without a word to anybody he departed.

Bakura stopped at a fast-food restaurant and used a dollar of his pocket change to buy a drink, feeing odd at being able to walk out of the establishment instead of running for his life. Sipping the cola absentmindedly, Bakura looked around at everybody on the streets, either on those damned lighted boxes, or looking at the ground and avoiding eye contact. After around fifteen minutes of wandering, he had finished the soda and run into a public payphone. He hesitated at its entrance, unsure if he should really go through with using it. He remembered Jaden, with his powerful brown eyes and innocent exterior, always with a smile on his face. Without another thought, he stepped inside of the phone booth and snapped the door shut behind him.

Looking around the cramped area, Bakura was unsure of what to do next. His eyes landed on the phone mounted to the wall in front of him, and he picked up the receiver. He scanned the print around the buttons with numbers on them, and finally came to the conclusion that he needed to put in a few quarters before he would even be able to think about dialing the number. Pulling out his pocket change, Bakura singled out six of the largest coins and inserted them into the slot next to the price of a call. He put the receiver to his ear and heard an obnoxious buzzing sound coming from it; good. That meant he could dial the number. Pulling out the slip of paper in his pocket, he stared at the numbers, and asserted himself. He could do this. It was just calling somebody, no big deal.

The first three numbers were on the dial pad, and he typed them in accordingly. He did the same for the rest carefully, making sure that he had his finger on the right number before pressing it, and then double checking to make sure his finger hadn't slipped while he had checked the first time. When he dialed the last number and stopped, the receiver started ringing. That meant that the call had gone through, and now he had to wait for the line being addressed to pick up. He sat there as the phone rang, once, twice, three times. He was quickly getting anxious, for reasons unknown. It was just Jaden's telephone he was calling; why was he so nervous? "It's because it's Fluffy," Bakura muttered to himself. On the fifth ring, it stopped abruptly, and Bakura's attention was alerted to the person at the other end.

"Hello?"

It was such a simple word, but Bakura would know the voice that said it anywhere. He took a deep breath and tightened his grip on the receiver.

"Fluffy? It's…." he trailed off, unsure if he should address himself accordingly, or by the nickname Jaden had given him to ease any tension that might have been there. A split-second decision and the movement of his mouth making words for him was all he needed to realize which answer would be best.

"Fluffy…It's me. It's…Baku."


End file.
